Venturing Into the Woods with Royal City Musical Productions Inc.
RCMPI’s presentation of Into the Woods opened on April 28, 2016 for a five-show stretch at the River Run Centre.
Stephen Sondheim’s Tony award-winning play takes well-known fairy tales, such as Cinderella, Jack and the Beanstalk, and Little Red Riding Hood, and weaves their stories together into a three-hour musical showcase fuelled by misadventure and magic beans. Into the Woods is characterized by its narrative and musical intricacies that undoubtedly take a great deal of talent and dedication to carry out.
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This year marks the 30th anniversary of Into the Woods’ debut on the stage, though the milestone was not a factor in Scott Lale’s decision to direct the show this season. Instead, the director’s love for the musical and its ability to break the fourth wall made Into the Woods an obvious choice.
“When I go to see a piece of theatre, I don’t want it to be like a movie,” said Lale. “I would rather we were aware of the fact that we’re all in a room together being silly, and Into the Woods screams that.”
[pullquote align=”left” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]…the goofy props and well-timed character schticks were highlights of the show…[/pullquote]For the show’s narrator, Andrew Scott, the opportunity to interact with the audience as well as the characters in the play presented a unique comedic experience.
“At no given point are we as actors or characters not aware that we are putting on a show for people,” explained Scott. “It has provided some of the most hilarious moments of the show.”
Although the musical borrows from the dark—and often twisted—fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm, Lale’s version took a lighter, funnier approach. The script itself did not stray far from the original, but the goofy props and well-timed character schticks were highlights of the show that both the audience and the cast could appreciate. In some cases, the most evil characters in the story got the biggest laughs. For University of Guelph alumna, Oriana Abrahamse, being cast as Florinda, Cinderella’s evil stepsister, was nothing out of the ordinary.
“I tend to get cast in evil parts,” Abrahamse explained. “I also really love them. I can play evil forever.”
Cinderella’s evil stepsisters shared what may have been the most gruesome scene in the play—where each sister got a part of her foot cut off in order to fit the golden slipper and impress the Prince—but it was made light by the cleverly knitted appendages that fell to the ground with each mutilation.
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Cinderella’s Prince, portrayed by Paul Pengelly, and Rapunzel’s Prince, portrayed by Tim Clarke, also provided some of the show’s most amusing—and agonizing—scenes. Based on the lively applause and hooting laughter during each of their scenes, it was clear that the melodramatic princes were a crowd favourite, and deservingly so. These were the kinds of characters that you hate to love, but love to hate, and the actors embraced their roles wholeheartedly.
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[pullquote align=”left” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“It’s a lighter version, yet it still hits very hard”[/pullquote]
While this particular interpretation of the script honed in on its comedic possibilities, the more serious morals behind the classic fairy tales remained true.
“It’s a lighter version, yet it still hits very hard,” said Abrahamse.
The original stories on which Into the Woods are based may have been written hundreds of years ago, however, “at the end of the day, there are still the basic lessons that these fairy tales were designed to teach people,” explained Scott. “I think those will be relevant at any given point throughout time.”
The most prominent moral of the story was performed in the emotional final number, led by Stephanie Kroezen as the Witch. After multiple deaths and destruction, the show ends with one final, important lesson: “Careful the things you say/Children will listen/Careful the things you do/Children will see and learn.”
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Unlike many fairy tales that are aimed to teach children, this lesson put the emphasis on adults to set an example for children who are always watching, learning, and listening, even if we think they are not.
“I know I’ve messed my kids up. They’re all awful children,” joked Lale, whose 18-year-old daughter, Thea, helped to direct the show. “I should have directed this a long time ago,” he confessed.